Sunday, January 19, 2014

A "SLIP"pery Tip, by Diane

Diane here, ready to share a tip that I use everyday in my studio, while working with Creative Paperclay®

I'm going to talk about "SLIP"

Slip is something I like to keep right on my worktable at all times while sculpting.

When I create a sculpt and it has dried, sometimes there will be a few small cracks on my dried piece.

There are several methods for filling those cracks, but for me I have found that filling the cracks in with slip is a quick and efficient method.

This is how I create my SLIP.

Making a batch of slip:
When I am working with my clay, I may have small scraps. Those little scraps dry and get a little crusty on the ends very quickly and I don't want to use those crusty pieces on my sculpt....

So, they get tossed in my little air tight plastic container.
As you can see in the pic above, I break the clay up into small pieces. I add just a little water, maybe a teaspoon or so. Then I place the lid on the container and let it sit a couple hours, or sometimes overnight if I get sidetracked..

When you come back to your slip it will have absorbed the water and have a fluffy, yet slimy appearance.
I stir it up and try to get all if any lumps out. You want it to have smooth consistency. I try to get the consistency a little thicker then cake batter... maybe a thick mustard. I add a couple drops of white glue ( Elmer's) and mix it well. By adding water, its breaking the clay down and loosing some of its strength. By adding the glue, it gives the slip its strength back when dry and it also adds to the nice smooth flow and ease when filling in your cracks.

Here is a crack that I am going to fill in.

With my paintbrush I apply the slip to the crack.

Work your slip in the crack and smooth out. Allow to dry thoroughly, then sand your sculpt.

after filling in all your cracks, replace the lid to keep your slip slippery ;)

Thanks so much for stopping by to see one of my tips. I hope it has been helpful with your Creative paperclay® journey!
~ Dianedianiemacdegns.blogspot.com